That Age Old Story
by MsKRyan.ox
Summary: After helping Mouch with his upcoming blind date, the men of Fire House 51 want to know the story of how Kelly Severide met his childhood friend and current Firehouse Paramedic Field Officer Raelynn Lowe. But, is there more to their friendship than either one of them can see?
1. Chapter I

Chapter I

 _Wouldn't it be the perfect crime…  
If I stole your heart…  
And you stole mine?_

* * *

"Why do I have to do this?"

"You're the only girl in the house," Mills answered, "And you'll know better than any of us how a girl would act when it comes to some of the stuff he'll say."

"You know, this isn't really fair," the red head complained as they made her stand in front of a makeshift restaurant table in the common area of Firehouse 51, "Just because I'm the only girl in this firehouse right now, doesn't mean I have to play the girl in this little date training exercise for Mouch." Kelly Severide, Lieutenant for Squad 3 just smiled at his childhood friend and watched as she rolled her blue-green eyes. He knew that there was no way that Raelynn Lowe, the Paramedic Field Officer for the firehouse was going to sit through with this without putting up some kind of fuss. She loved the guys on their shift, she really did, but sometimes they drove her just the tiniest bit crazy.

"Just do it, Lowe," Herrmann answered, "And stop you're whining."

"Fine," she huffed, as she felt Mills place his hands on her shoulders and gently push her into the seat that they needed her in.

"Sit," Mills ordered, clapping his hands together, "Okay, alright, ready Mouch." With a sort of purpose, the older gentleman that they were trying to help entered the room and came to stand next to their makeshift set-up, holding his hand out for Raelynn to shake.

"Hi Randy," she greeted, trying to sound as sickly sweet as she could, "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," he answered, not bothering to say anything else as he took the seat opposite her, pt on his reading glasses and lifted the menu that had been taken from the copious amount of take-out menus next to the sink in the kitchen. Without really meaning for it to happen, Raelynn's jaw dropped and she looked at him in complete shock, before looking at the guys signalling for them to lend the man a hand.

"Okay, hold on," Mills interrupted, smacking his knees, "Mouch, what are you doing?"

"Reading the menu," the clueless man answered.

"Why?"

"To see what they serve for dinner."

"Why so soon, I guess, is my question," Mills clarified, looking at the man curiously. Severide shook his head and threw his hands up in the air as they listened to Mouch struggle for an answer.

"Can I jump in here," Kelly asked, as Raelynn fixed him with a pointed look. If there was anyone in this room that would actually be able to point out to Mouch what he was doing wrong, it was the king of first dates himself.

"Yes, please," Mills answered exasperatedly, "Please." Sliding over in his chair, Severide came to sit next to Mouch, fixing Raelynn with a look and smile of his own.

"When you walk in to meet a blind date-"

"Look like you," Mouch finished for the Lieutenant, earning a chuckle from the rest of the group, "Well, that ain't happening, so she can take me or leave me warts and all."

"Can I finish," Kelly chuckled, fixing Raelynn with another look as she bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing out loud as Mouch apologized for the interruption.

"Okay," Severide started again, fixing Raelynn with his usual smirk earning himself the usual blush on her pale skin in response, "Engage in conversation, ask her something." Mouch turned back to Raelynn taking Kelly's instruction to heart.

"Okay, okay," he said, as Kelly rolled his chair back to the opposite side of the room, "Walk back in again or?"

"Start from there, you got it" Kelly answered, as Raelynn bit her lip even harder to keep from laughing. Part of her couldn't help it, but she knew that she would have to, what they were doing for the older man would be good for all of his future dates in the long run.

"Hello."

"Hello."

"So, where are you from," Mouch tried, earning himself a buzzer sound from Raelynn as all of the guys watched this train wreck of a training date continue.

"Can I jump in real quick," the other Lieutenant Matt Casey, chimed in, earning him a grateful look from the red head, who was now inwardly questioning why she let Kelly, Matt and the rest of the firefighters in Firehouse 51 talk her into these crazy little ideas during their shift down time. It was bad enough she decided not to be a part of the girl's weekend with Shay and Dawson and was now stuck Mr. Happy Go Lucky and Dr. Doom and Gloom, but now, she had to sit through this, for a lack of a better term, training exercise.

"Sorry," Matt continued, "You should already know where she's from because she has a profile on the website, just like you do." Raelynn pointed to Matt and nodded her head. He was completely and utterly right with where he was going with this.

"Good point, good point," Mouch conceded.

"So, if you ask a question that's already on the profile," Matt continued, as everyone nodded along, "She's going to think that you didn't bother to actually read it, okay? So, just branch out a little." Like a small light bulb had come on over his head, Mouch turned back to Raelynn to restart their previous conversation.

"Okay," he sighed, before pausing as everyone looked at him encouragingly, "Name five things that you're scared of."

"Uh," Raelynn stuttered, shooting a apprehensive look to the men that were gathered there, "Being here with you on this date just became number one for me right now, in fact, I would probably be calling Kelly to come pick me up with either the overprotective brother or the jealous ex-boyfriend bit just to make sure that you didn't follow me home. That being said, boys, this was; no, I'm not going to call this fun because that would be a lie and traumatic seems just a little too harsh. Now, one of you can be the girl because I have paperwork that needs to be done, might I suggest Severide. I'll be in my office, cursing the fact that I didn't go with Shay and Dawson."

"She wouldn't say that," Mouch interjected, as Raelynn made to leave the room, making sure to gently pat Severide's shoulder as she did. The guys shook their head and laughed.

"You know what," Matt started, as he finished laughing after a few moments, "I don't think I ever heard the story of how you and Lowe met, Severide." Kelly laughed and shook his head, leaning back in his chair slightly as he thought back to that day with a smile on his face.

"Yeah," Hermann added, "I mean, I know you met when her Dad was the POF and your Dad was working Squad with Boden, but you two kids were friends long before I even came to Firehouse 51." Severide smiled, looking around the group that was looking at him questioningly.

"What?"

"Come on," Cruz encouraged, "Tell us the story, it's got to be a good one."

"I wouldn't know about good one," Severide answered, "But, yeah, I guess, you could say that, we're still friends after all these years."

"Well, come on then," Matt laughed, "How did Kelly Severide and Raelynn Lowe become friends?"

"Well, it was early December…"

* * *

Snow was falling and the cold was hitting his face full on as he stood in front of the Firehouse that he thought of as a second home, he may not get along with his father, in fact most days they could go more than a few seconds with butting heads about something; despite all that he was happy to be there. Kelly Severide smiled as he made his way up the drive way and towards the door just as a petite looking redhead that was carrying a box that probably weighed more than she did.

"Whoa," he chuckled, just as the two of them almost smacked into each other.

"Oh, I am so, so, so, sorry-"

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa," Cruz interrupted just as Kelly was getting started, "Raelynn, our Raelynn, the woman that has gone toe to toe with men twice her size and tackled drugged up teenagers for trying to jump the rig apologized?"_

" _Do you want to hear the story or not," Kelly asked, looking pointedly at Cruz, who sank back in chair, "Good, now where was I…"_

"Oh, I am, so, so, sorry," the petite red head gasped, doing her best to keep a hold of the box in her arms, "I wasn't looking where I was going and I honestly wasn't expecting anybody would be behind me, which is probably why I almost bumped into you."

"Do you want some help with that," Kelly asked, reaching for the box in her arms just as she used her knee to help her balance the box, "A small thing like-"

"Whoa, buddy," the red head interrupted, looking at the taller, dark handsome teenager in front of her with an almost evil looking glare, "I can handle the box just fine, what I can't handle is some misogynistic ass hat from the local high school who is probably a complete adrenaline junky getting my dad and my second family hurt, so why don't you-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Kelly interrupted, throwing his hands up in the air, "Just offering, thought you could use a little help because that box you're carrying looks to weigh more than you."

"And I can handle it," the red head barked, before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, "Sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you, I don't even know y-"

"Exactly, you don't even know me, so I think you owe me an apology-"

"I owe you an apology," the red head repeated, looking at him completely scandalised, "You're the one who insinuated that I couldn't carry a box-"

"Like I said, it looks like it weighs more than you do," Kelly argued back, "I was just offering to help you before you hurt yourself or got somebody else hurt because if you haven't noticed, this is a working firehouse and they don't need some snot nosed brat-"

"Snot nosed brat," the red head repeated again, "Well, for your information this snot nosed brat is the daughter of the Paramedic Field Officer of this house and I was just helping the new candidate make lunch for the house before I was asked to run this box over to head-"

"Ooo," Kelly growled, looking down at the red head in front of him with a slight glare, "Look who feels all important now because her daddy is the POF of the house, which sweetheart pretty much means he does nothing, but sit in his crappy little mall cop car while the real heroes do all the wo-"

"Kelly," a man's voice called, as he opened the door and fixed his son with piercing look, "What are you doing yelling at Raelynn like that in the middle of the driveway? I thought I taught you better than that. You should be offering to help her with the box and walking her to the car." Kelly looked up at his father before looking towards the red head who now a slight smile on her face.

"Sorry, Mr. Severide, I almost bumped into him on my way out and then-"

"No, no, no Raelynn this isn't your fault," Benny chuckled, as he took the box out of the young girl's hands with little to no fight from her and practically thrust it into the arms of his son, "I could have sworn that I taught him better than that and how many times have I told you, Mr. Severide, is my father, you can call me Benny."

"Mr. Sever-sorry, Benny, it was a misunderstanding, I swear," Raelynn insisted, taking the box out of Kelly's hands again, struggling slightly as she did, "Your son and I just got off on the wrong foot and had a bit of a misunderstanding, I could have killed him with that box and then I wasn't accepting his help."

"Raelynn," Benny chuckled again as he once again took the box out of his hands and placed it in Kelly's arms, "Take help when it is offered to you, there will never be anything wrong with that. Now, Kelly, you help sweet Raelynn over to her car and we'll have lunch when you get back inside, okay?" Kelly sighed exasperatedly as he began walking over to the only BMW Bug that was on the street as Raelynn stood in the driveway watching him walk in a completely different direction than her car.

"Hey Severide," she called, as she stuffed her cold hands into her pockets, "Where are you going?" Kelly slowly looked around before looking towards Raelynn who was just watching him with a curious expression on her face. She hadn't moved an inch from where he had left her.

"Going to your car," he answered, jerking his head in the direction of said BMW Bug, "Like my Dad all, but order me to do when you said you were perfectly fine just letting you-"

"Wrong direction, Severide," Raelynn chuckled, trying to bite back the smile that was threatening to appear on her face, "Wouldn't drive a BMW if my life depended on it, my cars down the block, come on follow me." Kelly groaned, as he followed behind the young girl that just seemed to be driving the tip of her shoe into his last nerve. The last thing he wanted to be doing was helping someone who obviously didn't want the help that he was practically ordered to give her. He wanted to be inside asking questions.

"Look, sweetheart-"

"First things first," Raeylynn interrupted, turning on her heel to look at him straight on, "My name is Raelynn, Raelynn Lowe, not sweetheart, not darling, not anything else. You can call me Raelynn, Rae or Lynn. We're going to have to learn get along aren't we? Both of our Dads work at the same firehouse and the last thing I want is for our issues to sp-"

"Whoa, hold up a second," Kelly chuckled, lowering the box slightly to look at Raelynn, "I'm not interested in making friends, least of all with so-wait, whoa, is this your, your car?" Raelynn blinked her eyes at the fireman's son as he stood next to the car that she inherited from her grandfather unblinkingly.

"Uh yeah," she answered, leaning down to unlock the door, "It's mine."

"Whoa," Kelly gasped, taking in every aspect of the car that he could while just standing there, "I mean, do you realise what you have here."

"Uh yeah, a '69-"

"Plymouth Barracuda," Kelly finished for Raelynn who was once again trying to hold back a smile as she watched the guy who was most likely about to tell her that he didn't even want to be acquaintances with her just because their Dads worked at the same firehouse go absolutely gaga over her car.

"Yeah, I know," she answered, "I'm the one who actually, you know, owns the car, but whatever, look, Severide like I was saying before you rudely interrupted me to talk about my car, maybe we just need to learn how to get along, the last thing I want to do is for our hostility to spill into the firehouse because a couple of teenagers can't learn to get-"

"Is this the original paint job," Kelly interrupted her again, leaning over the car to look at the scratchless paint on the card.

"I think it is," Raelynn answered with a slight shrug as she thought about what her grandfather had told her upon handing her the keys when the Chicago DMV had decided that he was no longer fit to drive his baby, "Look, maybe if you let me-"

"And everything else on the car is completely original," Kelly asked, looking through the windows at the seat that looked to be in great condition for what he could see, "The motor, the-"

"The starter had to be changed when I was a kid and my grandfather got the leather redone just before he gave it to me, but everything else is the original part, I think," Raelynn answered, looking at the car giving up trying to get her point across. Kelly Severide was completely taken with her car and there was no way that she would be able to get him to agree to what she was trying to say if this car was in front of them.

"Well, that changes everything," Kelly chuckled, looking down at the car, "I can't honestly no want to be friends with someone who has an amazing car like this one. Maybe, you'll let me take a ride in it sometime-"

"Take the car for a ride or me for one," Raelynn answered, her hands coming to rest on her lips.

"If they're both on the menu…"

"Severide, let me make one thing very clear to you right now," Raelynn started, leveling him a single look, "My car was my grandfather's pride and joy and now it's mine and there is no way I'm about to let some guy make me another notch in his belt in the backseat of said car. You want to be friends, we can be friends. You want to take my car for a ride, we can take my car for a ride, but you and I will go no further than friends, do you understand me?"

"Yeah, Raelynn, I get it," Kelly chuckled, opening the door, the moment she unlocked it and placed the box on the passenger side seat, "Friends, that's it, understood."

"Good," she chuckled, "Now, I got to get going, but when you want to take that ride, give me a call, I'm sure you'll find a way to get my number." Kelly chuckled, tapping the hood of her car as he listened to the ignition start.

"Bye…friend."

"Bye Severide."

* * *

 **A/N: Alright, I know I said** _ **Your Future, My Past**_ **was my focus writing, but I had this chapter running rapid in my head and there was no way that I could write the next chapter without difficulties.**

 **Let me know what you think though.**

 **xo**


	2. Chapter II

Chapter II

 _Love isn't supposed to be easy…  
It's supposed to be worth it._

* * *

" _That's how you and Raelynn became friends," Herrmann asked, looking at the Lieutenant for Squad 3 skeptically. Kelly laughed and shook his head as he leaned back in his chair, a smile spreading across his face._

" _Friends," Kelly asked, "No, that's not how we became friends, we may have agreed to get along, but well friends, that took just a little bit longer and well after my Dad left, and there was the matter an apology of course and to this day I think that was the only apology that the Chihuahua gave me voluntarily."_

" _Chihuahua," Cruz repeated, looking in the direction of the PFO's office thoughtfully, "Yeah, I could see that, it makes sense."_

" _I wouldn't call her that to her face," Kelly chuckled, "I did it once and got a busted lip for it. She's a German Sheppard, if I ever saw one, plus I thought you lot wanted to hear our story…"_

"Do I have to be here, Mom, because, you know, that I just really don't want to-"

"Kelly," his mother hissed at him through her teeth as she pulled him through a throng of people by his arm, "Please, Lt. Boden was nice enough to invite us to sit with him and Officer Lowe and Officer Lowe's family and the very last thing that I want to hear tonight is you complaining, so just stop, okay, just stop." Kelly sighed and nodded as his mother continued to lead him towards the table that they had been assigned to. Thankfully, it seemed like the only one that had arrived so far was Lt. Boden.

Fiddling with the knot of his tie, Kelly looked around the banquet hall at all of the formally dressed Emergency Responders and their family members that were in attendance for the not always annual New Year's Fireman's Ball. He really did mean it when he told his mother that this was the very last place that he wanted to be right now. Many of the men and women here in this room knew his father and that he had left them earlier this year after his mother had caught him in their bed with one of his teachers. Part of him was thankful that even though his parents' divorce was official, Lt. Boden thought enough of his mother and him to invite them back to his mother's favourite event involving the CFD. The other part of him was cursing the fact that he didn't just stay home, especially after seeing that he would be sitting next to her.

"Severide," the red head in question greeted as she came up behind him with her father, mother and sister following slowly behind her, "You look just as bored as you usually do."

"You've been to one Fireman's Ball, you've been to pretty much all of them," she answered with a shrug of her own, "I've been going to this thing since I was old enough to actually stay up until midnight and if I have to listen to my Dad tell his joke about the Battalion Chief and the PFO in his speech one more time, I might just snap and kill some unsuspecting innocent person."

"And now I feel a lot less safe sitting here," Kelly chuckled, as he pulled out the chair that he had been assigned to according to the name tags that had been placed on the table, "Promise me that if you do snap and want to kill someone here, you'll find my Dad if he had the nerve to show up here tonight…"

"I heard about that, I'm sorry," Raelynn sighed as she took her own seat. Kelly waved her off, but quickly took a sip of water from his glass to cover up the frown that he could feel wanting to make an appearance on his face. He hated the look that she was giving him right now. She looked like she pitied him. There were only a few things that he wanted from her specifically and her pity definitely wasn't one of them.

"But, hey," she started, shrugging once more, "Maybe, I should just snap and kill you right now? Really, Severide, who in the world wears a black suit with brown shoes?" And within a fraction of a second, Kelly felt better than he had in a long while. Everyone from the CFD that he had come into contact with over the past couple of months had acted like they were walking on eggshells around him, but Lowe, she continued to tease him and it made him feel almost normal with their less than courteous exchanges.

"Well, at least I'm not going to freeze tonight," Kelly countered, taking in her appearance for the first tim since she had walked up to him and had started their usual banter. She was dressed in a black, form fitting dress with just a pair of spaghetti straps to cover her shoulders with no sign of a jacket or shawl in sight.

"Don't expect me to give you my jacket when this party goes outside to set off the fireworks," Severide continued to snark, smirking at her as he watched her rub her hands over her arms as if she already cold, "Maybe, if you turn into an icicle before the speeches start I won't have to worry about you snapping and killing me at all." Raelynn's eyes narrowed in a glare as she went to respond, but before she could say anything, she was interrupted by her father's loud booming voice.

"Kelly," her father greeted, reaching out to shake the young man's hand, "Haven't seen you around the Firehouse these days, how are you doing son?"

"I'm fine, sir," Kelly answered, shaking the hand of the much bigger man that was standing in front of him. As he continued to shake Officer Lowe's hand, it wouldn't be the first time that Kelly would wonder how someone as small as Raelynn had a father who was almost three times her size, but after seeing her mother around the firehouse every once in awhile, he partially understood it.

"Good," Officer Lowe chuckled, "I heard about things with your father and I want you to know, son, that if you ever and I do mean, ever need someone to talk to, you stop by the house and you come talk to me. And I also wanted to tell you that you are still welcome at the Firehouse, just because your father ruined the best thing to happen to him, doesn't mean, you're not considered family at 51 anymore." Kelly nodded and made to respond, but was quickly interrupted by the big burly man in front of him being pulled into another direction by some of the other PFOs in attendance.

"He's right, you know," Raelynn added, bringing his attention back to her, "We may fight like a couple of cats and dogs, but the Lowe house has always been considered a safe haven for those who ever need one, you're always welcome." Kelly nodded as he felt his eyes slowly begin to water. The last thing he wanted to do was cry in front of her, let along gie=ve her anything that she could use against him at a later date.

"Thanks."

"No problem," she answered, a small hint of humour in her voice, "Plus, I kind of owed you anyways. I don't know if you remember this or not, but, I, uh, I kind of jumped down your throat when we first met last year."

"Kind of jumped down my throat," Kelly repeated, looking at the red head with wide eyes, "You didn't just kind of jump down my throat, you tried to rip it out by the jugular and all I did was offer to carry a box that looked to weigh more than you did for you."

"No, you insinuated that I couldn't carry it myself because of my size," Raelynn responded, looking at him with the same look on her face that she that day, "And you were acting like some kind of misogynistic ass hat-"

"And that's what you called me that day," Kelly chuckled, "Along with an adrenaline junky, all the while insinuating that I was looking for some cheap thrills and might just get someone hurt or killed until you turned into this perfect little princess the moment that my father came out and all, but ordered me to carry the box that I had offered to carry to for you in the first place. Thanks to you, I got in real trouble that night."

"Yeah, well, I'll admit that I was wrong-"

 _"Whoa," Otis interrupted, looking at Kelly with wide eyes, "Not only did you get an apology, but you also got Raelynn to admit that she was wrong. What is your secret?" Kelly fixed him with look that clearly told the man that he was never going to answer that question. It was as if that little secret was the key to the universe._

 _"Anyways..."_

"Yeah, well, I'll admit that I was wrong about which Severide was a complete ass hat and I'm sorry about that day, you, uh, you didn't deserve any of that," Raelynn answered, reaching over to the water glass that had been refilled by the kind faced waiter that always seemed to make sure that her water glass was full no matter how much she had to drink from it. Kelly chuckled and smiled at her. For the first time since they had met a year prior, there was a comfortable silence between them. They didn't feel the need to be at each other's throats or feel the need to cut the other one down, no, for the first time ever, they were content to just sit in silence as dinner began to be served.

* * *

Kelly looked around the room as several members of the CFD got up and began to dance along to the song that was being played in the background by the band that had been hired to play live music. He watched with a slight smile on his face as Officer Lowe led his wife out onto the dance floor with his mother and Lt. Boden not far behind them. He didn't know if he should be worried about that or not, but he was quickly brought out of his thoughts by Raelynn's older sister, Arielle, batting her long eyelashes and holding her hand out towards him.

"Want to dance, Severide," the blonde asked, looking at him with an almost simpering smile. Out of the corner of his eye, Kelly could see Raelynn tense slightly, but just as soon as he had seen any signs of that tension, they disappeared. He want to thinking nothing of it, he really, really did, but they had finally gotten to a good place and he didn't want to ruin that. And knowing how the two sisters acted around each other, he felt that dancing with Arielle he could quite possibly ruin his newfound friendship with the red head.

"Sure," he answered though, causing Arielle to smirk at Raelynn before he had the chance to continue, "Raelynn, would you like to dance?" Both Lowe sisters looked at him with wide eyes and looking completely shocked as he slowly got to his feet and offered his hand to the red head, while the blonde spluttered next to him.

"Kelly," Raelynn started, using his first name for the first time ever, "What-what are y-"

"Come on," he chuckled, still holding his hand out towards her expectantly, "What's a dance or two between a couple of friends?"

"Depending on the friends," Raelynn answered looking up at him questioningly, "Dangerous and for us, very dangerous, do I need to remind you what happened when we first met? Do you really want to be dancing in the middle of everyone can see you get your ass handed to you when we break out into an argument?" Kelly laughed before he leaned down and grabbed her hand and hauled her onto the dance floor behind him, leaving her wide eyed, slack jawed sister in their wake.

"I know what you're doing, Severide," Raelynn said, the moment that he turned towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist as they began to dance to the song that had just started being played, "And I'm telling you right now, that I stand by what I said the day you I me-"

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, Lynn," Kelly chuckled as he looked down at her with his piercing blue eyes, "Just didn't want to dance with your sister, she looked like she was going to be a little handsy and I really didn't feel like being felt up in front of my mother or your dad, cause you know, he looks like he could kill me and I really want him to keeping liking me." Raelynn laughed and shook her head in response.

"She just broke up with her long time boyfriend," she answered, "And by all reports from her friends, she's decided to become The University of Chicago's own personal bike."

"Oh really," Kelly smirked, looking towards the blonde in question who was now sitting alone at their table looking around the room as if in search for another victim, "Maybe, I should, uh-"

"Don't even try it," Raelynn interrupted stepping on his foot so hard that he actually yelped, "As my friend, my sister, my older sister, my older sister of about three years, my older sister of about three years who is heartbroken after her high school sweetheart broke it off to sleep with his TA, is off limits to scumbags like you." Kelly shook his head and laughed again.

"You know in just one sentence you managed to call me your friend, insult me and protect the sister you despise at the exact same time," Kelly chuckled, as he spun her around playfully. Raelynn laughed as she clutched his shoulder to balance herself once more when he stopped.

"It's a talent, I know," she responded, smirking up at him. Kelly shook his head and made to dip her as they playfully danced. Out of the corner of his eye, Kelly could see Officer Lowe watching the two of them, his thoughts written plainly on his face. He was sure that PFO was probably thinking that they were more than just friends that there was a playful flirtation between them and Kelly, honestly, didn't know what he was going to say if Officer Lowe confronted him about it.

He had dealt with his fair share of over-protective fathers, more than his share if he really wanted to admit it to himself, but most of those fathers weren't as big or as strong as Officer Lowe. They also didn't offer him that chance, place or someone safe to talk if he ever needed one, in fact they just looked at him in disdain and looked to only put up with him until their daughters exited whatever rebellious phase they were in and the moment that was over he would be out of their lives for good.

"Penny for your thoughts," Raelynn chuckled, tapping the side of his skull gently, "You looked like you spaced out there for a minute. I would have been worried if that wasn't typical behaviour for you or if we weren't in a room full of emergency responders." Kelly chuckled before shaking his head.

"Typical behaviour really, you think me spacing out is typical behaviour," Kelly asked, as he continued to lead her around the dance floor, "If that's my typical behaviour, well, it looks like I'm looking into the wrong career path, but then again, I could always become a PFO."

"You are so lucky that my dad can't hear you right now," Raelynn laughed, throwing her head back, causing her hair to tickle his hand from its spot on her back, "If he heard you, he would have never let you forget who saved your Dad's ass a few years ago when he fell through the floorboards into the basement of that townhouse and needed to be transported quite quickly to Chicago Med."

"Alright, alright, alright," Kelly responded with a slight smile appearing on his lips again, "But, in all fairness, I think most of these people have had to help my father out of whatever scrapes he has gotten himself into over the years, your Dad wouldn't be the only one with a story."

"But, he'd be the only one to make sure you never forget it," Raelynn chuckled, laughing as he spun her around again, "And may the Lord help you, if you ever needed his help after he heard you say that because he'll never let you forget either story."

"And what about you," Kelly asked, looking down at her again, "You said you were looking into becoming a PFO like your Dad when Lt. Boden asked you during dinner, if I needed your help, would you let me forget it?"

"Depends on what kind of help you would need," Raelynn answered looking up at him with the most mischievous look on her face that he had seen in a long time, "I mean, getting you to the hospital on time, it all depends on the paramedics that I get put in charge of, but if it comes down to in field care, who knows what could happen." The two friends descended into laughter as the slow song that they were dancing to turned into a fast one, causing Raelynn to practically jump a foot away from Kelly.

"You want to go get a drink or something," he asked her, looking at her curiously, "You look a little pale right now."

"It's nothing," she told him, "I, uh, I just thought I saw my ex-boyfriend. His father is the chief of Firehouse 66 and we didn't end on the best of notes, if you get what I mean." Kelly looked around to see if he could spot anyone looking at him.

"What did you do," he asked, turning back to look at her, "Go all Chihuahua on him, like you did me?"

"What did you just call me," Raelynn asked, looking at the future second generation firefighter, her blue-green eyes almost blazing like a fire.

"Oh, come on, Rae, it was just a joke…"

"You called me a Chihuahua," she snapped, looking at him with the same evil glare she had given him the first day that they had met, "How do you expect me to take that as a joke?"

"Come on, Rae, you're like a small little dog," he explained, "Who just doesn't understand that she shouldn't be picking fights with dogs twice her-" Before he could even finish, Raelynn hauled off and cold clocked him as hard as she could. Holding his face, Kelly looked at her with wide eyes as he felt his lip split open and slowly begin to bleed.

"Oh, Kelly, I'm so sorry," she cried, not believing that she had actually just split his lip open in the middle of the Fireman's Ball, "Come on, let's go find you some ice."

* * *

 **A/N: So, I figured out where I'm going with this. It'll probably be just a quick five chapter story, maybe six depending on where these next two chapters take me. Let me know what you think though because after I finish writing 'Your Future, My Past,' I might look into taking Raelynn and putting her into actual Chicago Fire episodes.**

 **xo**


	3. Chapter III

Chapter III

 _You know you love someone…  
If hugging her makes you fade away from everything else…  
Even on your worst days._

* * *

" _You know," Matt started, as he and Kelly walked towards their cars at the end of their shift. Usually, Kelly and Raelynn would leave together and catch a quick breakfast, but she had already taken off wanting to meet with her sister and new brother-in-law for their bi-weekly breakfast before they had to start working at their own day jobs._

" _I've known you and Lynn for a long time, right," Matt continued, earning himself a confused look from his fellow lieutenant as they came to a stop on the side walk next to their cars, "I-I mean, I've known the two of you since we met at the Academy and the three of us and Andy all used to live together in that small apartment that was almost falling to pieces. Plus, I was there when she was dating and almost engaged to that guy, Kyle, and I've been there when you were dating Renee, both of them mind you and I just got to thinking-"_

" _Point, Casey, point," Kelly stated, looking at his friend pointedly, "What are you trying to ask me?"_

" _Well, I want to ask you when you fell in love with her, I know you Kelly, and I know that look you get when you're in love and it's the exact same way you look at her," Matt explained, causing Kelly to look at him thoughtfully before sighing. Letting his bag fall off of his shoulder and onto the ground by his feet, Kelly continued to look at his friend. Leaning against his car, Kelly thought back to the one day in particular that stood out in his mind._

" _I think in some way, Matty, I was always in love with her," he explained with a slight chuckle, "But, the day that I knew that I was in love with her, well, that was the day that…"_

Kelly walked into the apartment that he shared with Andy, Matt and Raelynn exhausted. He hated the mouldy old apartment that they lived in; it was barely enough to fit all four of them, there was two people to each bedroom, there never seemed to be enough hot water, especially when you in the bathroom after Raelynn or Andy, you always seemed to be banging into somebody when you turned around but with at least two of them being on the same hours, it was manageable. In fact, it was very rare that all four of them would be in the apartment at the exact same time. So, when he walked in to hear his three best friends laughing in their too small to even breathe kitchen, he couldn't help, but smile.

"What are the three of you even doing," he asked, as he threw his bag on the couch not even two feet away from him and threw his other arm over Raelynn's shoulders, "And what the hell is Matt doing wearing Raelynn's apron?"

"I didn't think it was fair that Raelynn was always the one that did the cooking on the one day that we always managed to have off," Matt explained, as he stuck his head out of the fridge to respond, "And well, I asked her to teach me how to cook."

"He's going to get his ass handed to him at 51 as candidate if he doesn't know how to cook something," Raelynn added, handing Kelly one of the beers that were in front of her, "So, I figured if he didn't ask, I was going to offer and good thing for him he asked and I figured I would teach him how to make something easy and you two can be the guinea pigs." Andy looked at the red head affronted before laughing at the look on Kelly's face as Raelynn and Matt slightly argued over the fact that her father's roast was not the easiest of recipes that she could have started him on.

"This beer is piss warm," Kelly complained, placing the bottle back on the small counter that had been bought to be their kitchen table, "What did you do, Andy, leave it the hall and forget all about it?"

"Fridge is busted again," Matt added, "Which is probably our adorable little red head is teaching me the most complicated recipe in her arsenal to get rid of most of the stuff in the fridge."

"For your information," Raelynn answered, chuckling before scowling at the taste of her own beer, "When my father first started as paramedic for the Firehouse, he ended up having to cook the Saturday roast more often than not because of this recipe, so you are going to listen to me and after this the rest will come easy."

"What I want to know," Andy interrupted, watching intently as Raelynn quietly instructed Matt to season the vegetables, which would be cooking with the roast, with the fresh herbs she had picked up early that day after her shift on Ambulance 41, "Is how Matty, here, gets away with calling Raelynn, our own personal guard dog with a Louisville slugger by her nightstand, adorable? Kelly and I have been trying to call you adorable for years and all we get is a smack to the back of the head or a solid punch to the shoulder." Raelynn rolled her eyes and shook her head as she leaned across the table to take a swipe at the third firefighter.

"See," Andy laughed, as he dodged the red head's wicked arm, "What did I tell you two?"

"He's the baby of our little makeshift family," she answered, throwing a glare at Kelly as he made to laugh at Andy again, "I'm not going to punish him for following the example of our two roommates that are more like professional clowns than professional firefighters." Kelly slapped a hand to his chest mockingly as he looked at Raelynn like she had just run over his childhood dog. Andy shook his head at the pair in amusement. Ever since Kelly started bringing the red head around to join them for whatever they planned to be doing that day, this turned out to be almost normal behaviour for them both.

"You know," Andy chuckled, as Raelynn turned around to start swatting at the second generation firefighter, "I remember the days when Kelly would come by my place after visiting the Firehouse and he would do nothing, but complain about this red headed little yap dog-"

"I never called her a yap dog, Satan's Mistress maybe, but never a yap dog" Kelly argued, looking pointedly at his best friend from kindergarten, "You're just trying to get me in trouble with our fiery paramedic…"

"Damn straight," Andy agreed with another laugh, just as Matt swore after hitting elbow against the stove door handle, something they had all done at one time or another more times than they could count, "Anyways, as I was saying before Severide so rudely interrupted me. He would come over, sit in the basement with me and he would just start to complain about you, Lynnie."

"I'm never getting drunk with either one of you again," Raelynn resolved as she rolled her eyes at the nickname that Andy had called her.

"So, the two of you didn't always like each other," Matt asked, sparing a confused glance at the pair before he started seasoning the small roast that had been unceremoniously dropped off by Raelynn's mother who had claimed that she had just been in the neighbourhood, "I thought you two were always friends or something." Both Raelynn and Kelly shared a look before Raelynn jumped down from her stool to come and stand beside Matt as she inspected his work on the roast that he was getting ready to place in the oven.

"Oh no," she told him, not looking up from said roast, "We hated each other; didn't manage to actually get along until a year later, but that's a story for another time. You did a pretty damn good job for your first time, Matty, now why don't we get this thing in the oven. It needs to cook for a couple of hours before we can try it, which means that Kelly can get to work on some margaritas and the four of us can have an old fashioned movie marathon from our days at the academy.

"As long as it's not your Audrey Hepburn movies," Kelly answered, "I'll make the margaritas, no problem, as long as you don't make me sit through movies that are older than I am on my first Friday night off in a week." Rolling her blue-green eyes at Kelly, Raelynn grabbed Andy and Matt and hauled them over to the TV to helped her choose a series of movies that they could watch and enjoy their first night together in over a month.

"I'm serious," Kelly called after her from the liquor cabinet, "She may be hot as hell in _Breakfast at Tiffany's_ , but unless you are or dying, Lynn, I am not watching Audrey Hepburn."

* * *

After falling asleep on the couch, he didn't know how many hours ago, Kelly rolled over when he overheard the sound of someone vomiting up whatever was in their stomach in the bathroom down the hall. Having been working on Firehouse for almost six months and practically growing up in one, he was used to sound, but that didn't stop him from gagging slightly when he heard the person in the bathroom throw up for the second time since he woke up before groaning in pain.

"Raelynn," he asked, knocking on the wooden door at the sound of her painful groan, "Are you okay?"

"No," she whined pitifully, leaning her forehead against the cold toilet seat as Kelly walked in and made to move her hair from her face, "Woke up in the armchair and I felt cold, so I went to our room to get one of your sweaters and to climb into bed when I started to feel really…" She trailed off as she felt another round of bile rise in her throat from her stomach. Kelly stayed silent as he watched her empty her stomach for what he guessed to be the third time. Her skin felt clammy to his touch and she was looking extremely pale as she turned to face him again as she replaced her head against the cool seat.

"Where was I?"

"Getting one of my sweaters," Kelly reminded her, pulling one of the many hairties she kept in the bathroom medicine cabinet and tied her hair loosely at her neck before leaning back against the wall. Raelynn closed her eyes slightly and nodded.

"Right, well, I was walking towards our room when my stomach started cramping really bad and I felt bile rising in the back of my throat, so I came in here-"

"And started puking your guts out," Kelly finished for her with a nod, "Do you think maybe if I move you, you'll feel a better? I'll get a bucket from the storage closet and set you up on the couch, I'll even turn on one of your Audrey Hepburn movies, while I make you some dry toast and send Matt and Andy out to get some of those energy drink that you like."

"As good as that sound, I, uh, I think I should just stay here since it-" She cut herself off once more as another round of vomit made it's way from her stomach into her mouth, which she promptly released into the toilet once more. Kelly hated seeing her like this, but there wasn't much that he could at this point in time, but sit with her and make sure that she would be eventually be okay and didn't pass out from exhaustion.

"How's your head feel," he asked, as he listened to her groan in irritation and grab onto her stomach again. The colour in her face still wasn't returning and even though she looked like she was shivering, the sweat on her forehead and on her neck told him differently. At this point, he had no idea what was wrong with her, but there was no doubt in his mind that he was going to find out and he wasn't going to just sit around and wait for the answers.

"Come on," he told her, as he listened to her empty her stomach once more, "We're going to Chicago Med, I don't know how long you've been puking your guts out, but you've been puking enough to convince me that we need to worried about dehydration." Raelynn went to argue with him, but promptly emptied her stomach once more. With that Kelly's resolve strengthened as he left the bathroom, got a jack and a pair of slippers for Raelynn before waking Andy and Matt up while grabbing the keys to his car before promptly returning to the bathroom to see Matt and Andy standing there listening to the red head empty her stomach again.

"Is she okay," Matt asked, pulling on a t-shirt as Kelly walked into the bathroom, picked Raelynn up into his arms and began walking towards the front door.

"I don't know, Matty," he answered, not bothering to look at other two firefighters as they followed him out the door and towards his car with plastic bags in hand, "But, we're going to find out. She needs to be taken to Chicago Med though before she-" The moment Kelly set her on her feet next to his car, Raelynn emptied her stomach onto the street, causing all of the guys to grimace in disgust before they helped her into the car and made their way to the medical centre.

"You're going to be okay, Lynn," Kelly assured her, as Andy held the plastic bag for her as she emptied her stomach once more. She could feel her oesophagus burning now, knowing that there was nothing left in her stomach, but acid.

"I promise, you're going to be okay."

* * *

Andy and Matt were asleep next to him in the horrible hospital chairs that the medical team had given them after Raelynn had been taken into a room and treated for a case of slight dehydration caused by salmonella poisoning. From where Kelly was sitting next to her bed, he could see that the sun had almost risen telling him that they had been here for hours. The puking had stopped after the doctors had given her something to settle her stomach, but they wanted to keep her until she was properly hydrated.

"Go home," Raelynn insisted upon opening her eyes and seeing him sitting there beside her, looking like he hadn't slept all night, "Kelly, I'm fine, the doctors here some of the best-"

"I'm not leaving you here by yourself with no way of getting back to the apartment," he argued, leaning his elbows next to her on the bed, "We're staying until they either release you or admit you for whatever they're treating you for."

"Acute salmonella poisoning," she responded, rolling her eyes as leaned her head back against the pillows and closed her eyes, "And they just want to make sure that I didn't do any damage to my oesophagus since those last few rounds of vomit were completely stomach acid, so they have to make sure before they release me unless they decide to admit me. Go home, Kelly."

"No," he argued again, shaking his head now, "There is no way I am leaving you here by yourself without a ride home. You don't have your wallet, ho-"

"I'll have the nurse's station call you or I'll find a payphone or something," she reasoned, looking at him pointedly before sparing a glance at their two sleeping roommates who were just at this point proving her right. Kelly rolled his eyes and leaned onto the bed again.

"I'm not leaving you here alone," he argued again, "On a normal day, I would say that you are perfectly capable of taking care of yourself, considering I've been on the receiving end of your temper more times than I can count right now-"

"Because you're exhausted," she pointed out, looking at him pointedly once more.

"But, you just spent a majority of the night puking your guts out and are just exhausted as I am right now, Raelynn," Kelly explained, voicing what he had actually been trying to say to her for the first time since they started arguing, "Yes, we are in a hospital, but if something were to happen to you and I wasn't there..."

"Okay," Raelynn relented, looking up at her friend sadly as she turned her head to the side as he took the seat he previously occupied, "Just promise me something?"

"What?"

"If I get admitted, you will take Matty and Andy home and get some sleep," she asked, blinking slightly trying to keep herself awake. It had been a long night for them all and she was sure that due to the fact that she still felt feverish and her stomach was still cramping slightly that the doctor in charge of her care would make the decision to admit her even if it was just for observation.

"I'll make sure your situated first," he countered, agreeing to her term, "I'm sure, your parents will want to know what wing you're in and what the room number is when I call to tell them about our little visit to Chicago Med last night."

"You forget my dad grew up on the same street as the surgeon in charge," Raelynn chuckled, shooting Kelly a smile as she watch him sink back into the uncomfortable as one of the nurses came in to check on the intravenous that was stuck in the red head's arm, "If Uncle Charlie was on call tonight or in the hospital at all after we arrived, my Dad already knows and is probably waiting for you or I to call the house and let him know."

"Should I go find a payphone and call him for you," Kelly offered, looking at her worriedly as he watched the colour in her cheeks that had returned a couple of hours ago disappear once more. Raelynn shook her head and leaned her head back against the pillows as stood back up again.

"You feeling okay," he asked, pressing his hand gently to her forehead to see if she was warmer than she had been when they originally brought her in during the early hours of the morning, "Because I can get the doctor or one of the nurses if you feel like you're going to puke again." She shook her head and just closed her eyes as she felt the nausea pass. Kelly watched the colour return to her face once more.

"Just a little nausea," she explained, opening her eyes once more, "Doctor said that would be normal. The nurse probably saw that the gravol they gave me was running low and has gone to get me another round. The doctor will come back soon and he'll be able to tell us whether or not I can go home. It's been an hour since they did the scan of my throat, he'll-"

"Right you are, Ms. Lowe," the doctor chuckled as he walked into the room, "From the scans that I have here, it looks like your oesophagus is fine, thankfully for you, there was no damage done to it or any burns from when you started vomiting up the acid in your stomach. Now, I have decided that to send you home, since we have subsided the nausea and you weren't nearly as dehydrated as we originally thought you were. I am however, going to send you home with a prescription for Ceftriaxone. I want you to take one tablet for the next two weeks and if there is any sign of salmonella poisoning, such as vomiting, fever, diarrhea or blood in the stool, I want you to come right back here or the closest emergency room and you'll be off of work for the next two weeks. Understood?"

"Understood, Doc Kyle," she answered, smiling as the doctor came to stand next to her bed and shook her head.

"Just don't eat anymore of raw cookie dough you like so much," the young doctor chuckled, "And definitely don't tell your friends that they can cook when they obviously can't." Raelyn. laughed and Kelly couldn't help the jealous feeling that came over him at the sight of seeing this young and up and coming doctor apparently flirting with a sick patient, a beautiful patient, but a sick patient nonetheless.

"Don't make me report you to uncle Charlie, Dr. Kyle," Raelynn joked, as the nurse came in and started to remove all of the wires that Raelynn had been hooked up to, "See you at Sunday Dinner with Chaplain Orvlosky?"

"Wouldn't miss it," Kyle answered with a smile, before exiting the rooms to get the discharge papers ready for her.

"What the hell was that," Kelly asked, as he helped her out of the hospital gown and back into the pyjamas she had been wearing before their arrival.

"What? He's cute," she answered, "And he's going to be a doctor; that's an honourable career. And seriously, Kel hold off on the overprotective brother routine, I just asked if he would be at Sunday dinner, somewhere I see him on a weekly basis. It wasn't like he asked me on a date." Shaking his head, Kelly said nothing else before turning to Andy and Matt, who had slept through the entire exchange. Kicking their feet in slight frustration, Kelly woke them up quickly.

"Come on, you knuckle heads," he called as he helped Raelynn into the wheelchair that the nurse insist they use to take her out of the hospital, "It's time to go home."

* * *

 **A/N: Well, there's the moment that Severide knew he was in love with Lowe, but does she love him and if she does when did she know it? Find out in the next chapter.**

 **Let me know what you think.**

 **xo**


	4. Chapter IV

Chapter IV

 _Falling in love with him was never in my plan…  
Until one day…  
I woke up loving him so much._

* * *

" _Best PFO ever," Shay groaned in appreciation as she sunk her teeth into a stack if pancakes that had become almost a monthly treat on behalf of the red head sitting across from her. Raelynn laughed before she too sunk her teeth into her own stack of chocolate chip pancakes that would be paid for by the city. One of her many duties as the Chicago Medical Board appointed Paramedic Field Officer for Firehouse 51 was to conduct meetings for her monthly reports to the CMB with the paramedics that reported to her; she preferred to do these over a hot meal or ice cream (depending on the season) on the board's dime. If they were going to force her to conduct these meetings, they could pay for them._

" _The only PFO that buys us breakfast, while at the same time telling us what we might've done wrong," Dawson joked, before taking a bite from her own stack of pancakes that she had drowned in cherry syrup, "Though, you usually praise us at the same time, so yeah, I agree, best PFO ever."_

" _I actually brought you ladies here to talk about something serious," Raelynn joked, sipping on her coffee with a slight smile on her face. Both Shay and Dawson shared a curious look between them before leaning their elbows on the table and looking at one of their bosses intently waiting for her to explain._

" _No," Dawson gasped, looking at Raelynn with wide eyes, "No, come on! Shay and I go away for a weekend and you and Severide finally get together, oh my-"_

" _Whoa! What," Raelynn interrupted with what could only be described as an almost shriek, "What are you talking about? Kelly and I, we're just friends…"_

" _Really, Lynn, you're just friends," Shay repeated doubtedly, "Come on, I've seen the way you look at him and the way he looks at you. It's the same that Dawson looks at Casey, that Casey looks at Dawson, that Mouch looks at his couch, the way I look at, looked at Clarice…"_

" _Well, we're not together," Raelynn answered with a roll of her eyes, "No matter how much I want us to be…"_

" _Come on, Lynn," Dawson chuckled, looking at the PFO with curious eyes, "Tell us when you fell in love with Severide."_

" _I've been in love with him for as long as I can remember, ladies," she answered, "From the moment that he started falling all over himself to get a closer look at my car, but the moment that I knew it, well…"_

A slight exhausted Raelynn padded down the hall barefoot to answer the continuous knocking on her front door. Gone were the days of the small apartment that you could barely breathe in that she had at one time shared with Andy, Kelly and Matt. Andy had moved out not long before she had and in with this college girl he had met named Heather and she had moved out and into Kyle's already bought apartment, while Kelly and Matt were still living in that small little apartment, but had found a much better one that they would be moving into at the end of the month.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she called, as she pulled her outdoor slipped on and pulled the door open to see Kelly standing there, not so steadily, with red eyes and looking like he had been drinking from the moment that they had gotten off shift. In fact, she was sure that he had been drinking because she could smell the mass amount of alcohol on his breath.

"What are you doing here, Kelly," she whispered, shutting her apartment door behind her as she came to stand in the hallway as Severide sank back against the adjacent wall and just looked at the floor miserably. The two long time friends had gotten into a shouting match earlier at the Firehouse when he had taken an unnecessary risk and had given her the biggest scare of her life and she had seen a lot as a paramedic. Her new riding partner, Dawson couldn't believe that she had gone head to head with the newest member of rescue squad 3 where almost the entire Firehouse could hear them, but the paramedic in charge had been scared out of her mind when she had watched the man, she considered to be her best friend and the one who she just couldn't have, run into that burning building to get a little girl's favourite stuffed animal, not listening to Chief Boden's order to stand down.

"Wanted to ap-apologize," he explained, slurring his words slightly as he took a step towards her, "Knew that I s-scared you, wanted to make sure you knew that I wasorry," Raelynn smiled sadly at her friend, shaking her head slightly before opening the door behind her and steering him towards the couch that she had gone to three stores to find when the one Kyle originally had was ruined. She had no idea how Kelly had found his way to her and Kyle's apartment, but she wasn't about to let him leave while he was in this drunk and miserable state.

"She's dead," he whispered, as Raelynn tried to get him comfortable enough on the couch to sleep it off, "She's dead, Rae."

"I know, Kelly," she whispered in response. His mother had died a few days ago and they had been talking at the squad table with Matt and Andy when he had gotten the phone call from the CPD telling him what had happened. Chief Boden had assured him that he could take as much time as he needed, but Kelly had been at the Firehouse bright and early their next shift, ready to start another day.

"At least she got to see me join squad," he slurred, as he sank down onto the couch kicking off his shoes clumsily, "She was so proud of me when I became the youngest guy to do it; said I-I would be a better man than Benny ever was." Raelynn nodded and helped Kelly take off his leather jacket. It was like helping an incapacitated toddler take off his clothes, but she knew that if she didn't help him out of that leather jacket of his that he insisted on wearing whenever winter turned it's ugly head on the windy city, she would never manage to get to fall asleep.

"Come on, Kelly," she whispered, taking his jacket and throwing it onto the arm chair that had once belonged to her father before he had graciously donated it to her and Kyle's living room when he had bought himself a new one, "Let's get some sleep, you'll feel much better in the morning." She was lying and she knew it. His mother's funeral was going to take place at a nearby funeral home tomorrow and she knew that if the hangover he would no doubt have wasn't going to cause him a problem, then his mother's funeral was definitely going to be an issue for him.

"No," he argued, "Come on, Lynnie, let's, lets' have a-a movie marathon like we used to. I-I'll let you have an Aud-Audrey Hepburn movie. I know how much you like those." Biting her lip slightly, Raelynn shook her head in response. As tempting as the offer was, she knew that he was drunk enough that he would never even make it through the not so coming attractions of the first movie.

"Come on, Kelly, sleep," she chuckled, covering him with the throw she kept on the back of the couch, "It'll be good for you to sleep. Sleep will help you feel better in the morning, okay?"

"Can't sleep," he argued with her as he looked at her pitifully once more, "Can't sleep because if I sleep it feels like a-a dream and when I wake up, s-she won't be there and everything comes back. Sleep isn't good, Raelynn, it's bad, bad for me." Raelynn looked at her friend sadly before taking a seat in the empty spot ext to him, bringing him into a one-armed hug. She closed her eyes and listened in silence as sobs began to wrack Kelly's body.

"I don't know what to tell you, Kelly," she whispered, holding his head in the crook of her neck, "I know you don't want to hear me tell you that it's going to be okay because you're not ready for that bit yet and I know that you definitely don't want to me tell you the God's plan bit and frankly, I'm in mood to give it either. Tell me what you want to hear, Kelly, and I'll say it." There was a pause in the sobs as he took in what Raelynn was trying to tell him, but before Kelly could answer, the sobs once again wracked his body.

"Just stay with me," he asked, "Please, just stay with me. I-I need you, Rae, I-I have no else to go to. Matt's with Hallie and Andy's with Heather and I kn-know you have Kyle, but you, you…" He trailed off again as sobs once again wracked his body.

"You know I will, Kel," she answered, a frown gracing her tried features, "I-I'll always stay here with you."

* * *

"I just don't know why he had to sleep on our couch, Lynn," Kyle whispered to her as the two of them walked towards the funeral home where the funeral for Kelly's mother was scheduled to be held, "Come on, Lynn, he shows up at the apartment drunk and then ends up falling asleep with his head in your lap, completely trapping you there and I wake up alone to find you the two of you on the couch. How do you think that makes me feel?"

"And how do you think it makes me feel when I see my friends, may I repeat friend, who is completely inconsolable over his mother's death right now," Raelynn shot back looking at her boyfriend out of the corner of her eye annoyed. She knew where the doctor was coming from; she really did. It would be hard on her too if she had come into the living room to see Kyle sleeping on the couch with the head on his best friend of the opposite gender, who he was completely and utterly in love with, in his lap after waking up in their bedroom alone.

"Okay, okay," Kyle answered, biting back the response that he truly wanted to give her, "Just, you know, you and I are both going to be working tomorrow and I was hoping that we would just have a night to our-"

"If he shows up at the door tonight drunk again, I'm not going to risk him hurting himself and ending up in the ER," she answered, looking at Kyle annoyed once more. She had no idea what his problem had been these past couple of weeks, but he had been on her case about not only her friendship with Kelly, but her friendships with Matt and Andy more and more. It always seemed to start a fight between them if she wanted to go to the bar and have a few drinks with her old roommates after their shift, but if she wanted to go out with her sister or with Amanda, her best friend from high school, or even with Dawson, he was completely and utterly fine, happy even. He was driving her completely crazy.

"Raelynn," Kelly called, the moment that he saw her and Kylee approaching the home. Standing with him were Matt and Andy with the same somber looks on their faces that she and Kyle had. Offering her a sad smile, they watched as Kelly run over to her and throw his arms around her in the biggest hug they had ever seen him give her.

"Thanks for last night," he whispered in her ear, as he held her tightly to him, "I'm sorry about running out of your apartment like that this morning, I just, I needed to get back and-"

"Kel, it's okay," she answered, smiling up at him as he released her from his grip to offer Kyle a handshake, which the doctor reluctantly took, "You had to get home and get your suit and everything, I understand, it's fine and don't worry about it ever, okay? You just worry about you today, okay?"

"Yeah, okay, I, uh, I, um," Kelly stuttered, looking at her with a slight frown on his face, "Um, I know I probably should have asked you earlier, but, uh, would you mind coming in with me? Mom, uh, she, uh thought of you like the daughter she never had and, uh, she would have loved." Raelynn looked up at him with her blue green eyes and the moment that she looked into those sad looking, captivating blue eyes of his, she was completely and utterly sunk and she knew it. With just one look of those eyes, Kelly could ask her to do anything and everything and she most likely would do it; there would be tonnes of arguing on her end, but she would still end up doing it.

"Okay, Kelly, I-I'll come in with you," she answered, looking up at him.

"Raelynn," Kyle went to interrupt, but quickly stopped upon spotting the look on both Andy and Matt's faces. Neither one of them liked Kyle and both the doctor and Raelynn knew it. They thought he had changed Raelynn for the worst and during these last couple of weeks, she could see the way that he had changed her. Never once would she have ever considered wearing a dress anywhere in Chicago during the middle of winter, but here she was standing in the cold, practically shivering in a dress that she almost didn't realise that she owned. She would have worn a much warmer outfit if she had one, for some reason when she opened her closet this morning, all of the clothes she would have worn with the exception of her dress blues weren't there and in their place was outfits that she knew she would hate to be in.

"Mom would have been glad that you wore a dress for her," Kelly sighed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to lend her some of his warmth, "She loved it when you wore the dresses she bought you." Raelynn smiled and nodded. Right, that was one of the many reasons she wore the dress on the coldest day in Chicago for a while, for the woman that they had come to celebrate.

"Come on," Kelly sighed, "Let's go inside and thanks for doing this. I don't think I'd be able to handle this if you weren't here."

"No problem, Kelly, seriously…"

* * *

Biting on her thumb slightly, Raelynn watched the new episode of Friends in silence. Her thoughts were running a mile a minute in her head as she thought about the events that had taken place earlier in the day. She thought about the way she felt when she had woken up to see Kelly lying comfortably with his head in his lap, as well as the way she felt when he had come bounding up to her before throwing his arms around her and asked her to walk into the funeral home with him. Raelynn thought about the way that Kyle had reacted to finding Kelly on the couch that morning and the way he had been reacting towards Kelly since they had gotten together almost two years ago. She also thought about the way that Matt and Andy reacted to Kyle.

"What am I doing," she whispered to herself as she curled into her spot and hugged a pillow to her chest, "Am I even, what do I, ugh." Running her nails through her wavy hair, she let her thoughts run wild as she listened to Kyle in the kitchen. They had been at odds since they had come home from the house that Kelly had grown up in and would eventually have to sell in the coming months, not being able to afford the payments that he would need to make to keep it in his name.

"Something bothering you, Lynn," Kyle asked, as he placed the bowl of popcorn he made on the coffee table in front of them, "You've been unusually quiet since you changed into your-"

"Are you happy with me anymore," Raelynn interrupted, looking at him dead on for a moment before she looked down at her nails, "I mean, come on, Kyle, what have we been doing almost every night that we've had off over the last month."

"I don't know," Kyle shrugged, "Sure, we've been arguing more than usual…"

"Every other night, Kyle, we're arguing every other night and when we're not arguing, we're not talking or we're at work," Raelynn continued, looking at him wide eyes once more, "That's all we seem to be doing lately and I-I don't know if I can do this anymore. I don't even feel like myself anymore and-"

"Of course, you're yourself, Lynn," Kyle interrupted, looking at her with a confused look on your face, "You're the woman that I fell in love with. The finely dress, well-mannered, kind, caring woman that I-"

"Really, Kyle, because the last time I really looked at myself, I-I didn't like to wear dresses unless I absolutely had to and I may be well-mannered, but if you knew me and I mean really knew me, you would know that I'm not always that way, especially at the Firehouse," she answered, biting her lip as she finished, "I-I don't think this is working anymore."

"What did Kelly say to you," Kyle asked, looking at the red head angrily, "What did Severide say to you when he showed up here last night?"

"Nothing," she argued back, ""He was babbling about the fight we had and his mother, Kyle and this isn't about Kelly, this is about how I don't feel like myself anymore and truthfully, I haven't felt like myself since we started dating. Kyle, I love you-"

"If you love me," Kyle interrupted again, "Then, marry me, Lynn, marry me and become Mrs. Kyle Saunders…" Raelynn looked at Kyle with wide eyes as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a diamond ring that he had been carrying around for weeks for her to see. She couldn't believe what Kyle was asking her right now, especially when she was going through whatever she was going through. Sure, she had said that she had loved him, but she sure as hell wasn't in love with him, that much she knew.

"What," Raelynn gasped, still trying to get some sort of grasp on the situation, "Kyle, what are you do…ing?" Slowly, she watched as Kyle slid off of the couch and onto one knee in front of him. She didn't know whether or not she was dreaming or this was actually happening, but something told her that it needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later.

"Kyle," she started, only to be interrupted again.

"No, Lynn, you are everything that I ever wanted in a woman and I can't imagine my life without you," Kyle started, reaching over to grab both of her hands into one of his, "You're funny, you're smart, you're this vibrant person that I love coming home to every day. You, Lynn, are the woman of my dreams and I am so thankful to have found you and-"

"Kyle, stop," Raelynn interrupted, finally finding her voice again, "I can't marry you because it just, Kyle, this is. I'm not happy in this relationship anymore and I know that you aren't either. It wouldn't be fair to either one of us to continue going on this way, okay?"

"I want you out of this apartment in a week," Kyle responded, not even looking at her as he got up from the floor, knocking the bowl of popcorn onto the floor angrily, "It's my name on the lease, so I won't you out by next Friday."

"Okay," she told him, frowning as she watched him walk to his room. She would have no idea how she would manage it, but she would manage it even if she had to go back and live with her parents or sleep on the couch in Matt and Kelly's apartment or go and live with Andy and Heather until she could find a place of her own. She wanted to be sad that it was over, but she couldn't even find it in herself to cry.

" _And you know the rest just like-_

"Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61. Structure Fire, Randolph and LaSalle _" came over the radio, causing all three woman to jump into action. Dawson and Shay left Raelynn to deal with the bill and run out to the ambulance._

" _Hey Otis," Dawson said, the moment she finished dialling her cell phone to call the man in question, "You and Cruz still have that bet on how long it'll take Severide and Lowe to get together? Yeah, uh, put me down for another year and put Shay down for…"_

" _Three years engaged with a baby on the way," the blonde chuckled, as she put her foot on the gas and sped through the streets of Chicago, "And yeah, I'm serious. In three years, they'll be engaged with a baby on the way."_

* * *

 **A/N: Well, here's the second last chapter…**

 **I just have the epilogue to go and we find out just who won that bet Otis and Cruz have going. How long do you think it'll take from this point for Severide and Lowe to figure out they actually feel the same way for each other?**

 **Let me know what you think.**

 **xo**


	5. Epilogue

Epilogue

 _Meeting you was fate…  
Becoming your friend was a choice…  
Falling in love with you, well, that was beyond my control._

* * *

"Don't you ever scared me like that again," Raelynn whispered to Kelly, gently running her thumb over his cheek as she sat in the horrible hospital chair next to his bed, listening to the beeping sounds of the machine next to her. It had been only a couple of hours since he had almost died when that complete nut job had tried to blow up the ER at Chicago Med trying to kill everyone inside it with whatever disease he thought he was carrying if the initial blast didn't kill them first. And as she sat there next to him, she still couldn't get the image out of her head of Kelly running at her full speed to get her out of the way because she had been the one standing closest to the bomber when he has let go of the grenade. She wanted to tackle Dr. Halstead to the ground and strangle him with her bare hands and his stethoscope to add insult to injury when he had the audacity to suggest that they black tag Kelly and move on. Raelynn loved this man for as long as she could remember and with everything she had in her heart and she had just gotten together with him, she wasn't about to let Kelly go any time soon.

"Sorry, babe," he whispered back to her, his voice raspy from the tube that Mills and Brett had to insert down his throat for his emergency surgery, "I-I just saw this guy pull the pin from a grenade and you were standing next to him and-"

"It's okay," she interrupted him with a smile appearing on her face, "But, uh, the next time you want to save my life, maybe, you could pull me away from whatever impending disaster is about to happen instead of running right at it and almost getting yourself killed." Kelly went to chuckle, but winced from the pain slightly. He could see in those beautiful blue-green eyes of her's that he had come as close to death as one could get without actually dying and that Raelynn, the woman he loved for most of his life had really thought she almost lost him.

"I'm not going anywhere, anytime soon, Lynn," he whispered to her, grabbing the hand that was still pressed against his cheek and held it there as he placed several kisses on her palm, "It'll take a lot more than a suicide bomber and a few pieces of shrapnel to take me down, especially when I have the most beautiful and wonderful woman to live for in my life." Raelynn couldn't help the usual blush that crept upon her face as she listened to the way that Kelly described her.

"Now, come on, babe, there's plenty of room in this bed for the both of us," he insisted, hissing in pain as he moved over on the small bed slightly to make enough room for her to lie down next to him, "We both know you're not going home tonight and those hospital chairs are horrible on your neck and back." The red head gnawed on her lip and contemplated what her boyfriend was asking of her as she watched him pat the empty space next to him. It wouldn't be the first time they cuddled in a hospital bed: the time after that experimental surgery he went through, when she almost died herself when that tow truck had collided with her buggy after smacking into Ambulance 61 almost killing Shay in the process as well or the time when they both needed to kept overnight for observation after the structure fire that had killed Shay just to name a few.

"I don't know, Kel," she answered looking at him hesitantly, "You just had major, major emergency surgery…"

"Yeah, and the best thing for me to do is get some rest," he finished for her, a cheeky smile appearing on his face, "And you and I both know, Lynn, that I won't be getting any rest if I'm worried about you falling asleep in that damn chair that you're sitting in."

"Well, then, maybe I should just go home," Raelynn supposed, looking at him through her long eyelashes as she made to collect the things she had with her, but before she could, she felt Kelly grab her hand once more and hold it tightly in his own.

"You won't get any rest either if you go home, you'll most likely end up at the apartment I share with Matt now and you won't get any rest there either. Dawson'll probably be there," he pointed out, pulling her towards the bed gently once more, "Now, come on, Rae, climb on in and place that pretty little head of yours on my chest like I know you want to. Then, we can both get some rest before April come in, looking to give me my next dose of pain medication."

"Which is just going to be ibuprofen, maybe Tylenol at most," she explained to him, taking extra care to look at him pointedly, "We are not repeating what we went through for your shoulder. You got enough morphine from both Shay and I to knock out a damn elephant and then-"

"Rae," Kelly interrupted with a chuckle, "It's fine. I'm glad I had you here to say something because I don't know what they would have give me if you hadn't been there." Leaning over to press a gentle and chaste kiss to his lips, Raelynn smiled as she brushed her fingers through his already tousled hair.

"I have to look after my man, don't I," she asked, pulling away from him once more, "Now, scooch the other way, I'm lying on the side that you didn't have an arterial bleed on, I'm gonna lie on your good side." Chuckling to himself before hissing in pain once more, Kelly made to move to the other side of the bed as she slowly climbed in and lay her head on his chest. It wasn't as comfortable as it normally was when they were sharing her bed, with all of the wires that were attached to him to track all of his vitals.

"I think Matt is catching onto us," Raelynn whispered, as she felt Kelly run his fingers through the end of her hair, "He offered to give me a lift home from the Firehouse today, but was surprised when I showed him the keys to your car and told him that I would drive it over to the hospital."

"That wouldn't be the first time that you drove my car," Kelly answered, shrugging off the fact that the other Lieutenant might be catching onto them, "He's seen you drive it when I was going through that tough time after Shay died and would have to pick it up from wherever I had left it that night. Matt's not catching onto us at all, you don't have to worry about that."

"I'm not worried about it," Raelynn corrected, looking up at him before placing a gentle kiss on his jaw, "I was thinking that maybe if Matt really is catching onto us, then maybe, we need to start telling people, especially Boden. He doesn't take kindly to secrets being kept in his firehouse after all."

"Boden'll want to separate us," Kelly argued, tightening his grasp on her slightly, "He already gave Matt and Dawson a chance and look how well that went-"

"I don't work under you and you don't work under me-get that smirk off your face right now, that wasn't as vaguely dirty as you think it sounded," Raelynn answered, not bothering to look at her boyfriend's face to see the smirk that had come across his face at her words, "Not to mention, I don't necessarily report to Boden, I report to the Chicago Medical Board. Our case would be an entirely different thing."

"You think so?"

"I know so," Raelynn chuckled, smiling to herself, "We'll be fine and the issue that Dawson and Matt have is never going to be an issue for us."

"How do you know that," he whispered, clutching at her once more.

"Because, you already made the mistake of telling me how to do my job once and you never once made it again-"

"Only because you threatened to cut off the one part of me that would give me the ability to father children," Kelly reminded her, causing a small laugh to escape from the woman in his arms, "Which you probably would have regretted the moment that we finally got together. But, he is her Lieutenant and she disobeyed a direct order, when you're in that kind of danger, you can put-"

"Someone else's life at risk when you disobey those orders; I'm not going to comment on that right now, but you're right, he is her Lieutenant and she should have listened to him," Raelynn agreed, as she gently ran her hand over his chest and abdomen, "But, their problem was the fact that they couldn't separate their personal life away from work. Dawson could only see Matt as her fiancée and not the man she needed to trust to keep her safe and Matt, well Matt, was extremely right in this case and Dawson wasn't quite ready to see that at the time, though I do agree with her that he should have talked about the way he was feeling about her behaviour in their off hours. If you can't talk to the person you love, what kind of relationship do you have?" Kelly chuckled and shook his head as he closed his eyes and just breathed in her scent. She no longer smelled of smoke, but of her lavender scented body wash that he had bought her for her birthday earlier that year.

"We can tell them when I get out of here, okay?"

"Or should we just let them figure it out on their own?"

"That sounds like a good idea too," he sighed, as he felt his eyes slowly begin to get heavy as sleep overtook him.

* * *

Two and A Half Years Later…

* * *

"Speech, speech," Capp called to Kelly and Raelynn amongst the many men and women that had gathered in Molly's as they stood at the bar in one another's arms celebrating the announcement of their engagement. It may have taken almost them another two and a half years from that cold and horrible Chicago winter day to actually get their acts together and get to this point in their lives, but they were all smiles that night when they announced to their family at the Firehouse and their other family members that they were in fact engaged and set to get married within the next couple of years.

"Okay, okay," Raelynn called in response, before sipping at the soda water that Kelly had handed her with a smile on her face, "Lord, I don't even know where to start, well, um, I guess, it took Kelly and I almost fifteen years to get to this point. Some of you know this, some of you joined our little mixed up, mismatched, fire fighting, medicine giving, life saving, dangerous little family after Kelly and I finally got together, but it is great to see you all here tonight to celebrate the fact that Kelly and I are finally engaged. There wouldn't be anyone else that we would want to celebrate this milestone with."

"Along the way, we lost a few family members. We lost my mother, Andy Darden, Rebecca Jones and, of course, Leslie Shay, but we gained some amazing family members along the way too and another home away from home as well. Herrmann now has five kids to keep us all on our toes and he opened this amazing pub with Dawson and Otis, Mills showed up and took most of us for an emotional ride, our firehouse got a little bit noisier with our loving mutt, Pouch, Chief Boden got married to the wonderful Donna and they gave us this wonderful ball of energy in Terrence, I found my little half-sister Katie, Ambulance 61 got a couple new wonderful paramedics in Chilli and Sylvie, a copious amount of squad members and, of course, I mean, who could ever forget the day Jimmy got dropped off at the Firehouse wrapped up in tape and covered in shaving cream. It's safe to say that we've all gone through some tough times, but tonight, we won't just be celebrating the fact that Lynn and I are engaged," Kelly continued for his bride to be. Silently, the crowd looked around in confusion as both Kelly and Raelynn looked at each other and smiled once more before Kelly leant down and pressed a sweet and gentle kiss to Raelynn's forehead.

"Well, um, my family, Kelly's family and Chief Boden already know about this, but since nothing is really a secret with the CFD or with the CMB or CPD in this city, Kelly and I thought that we should tell you all tonight that," Raelynn paused as she leaned further into her fiancé's strong embrace, "I will continue to be Firehouse 51's PFO, but as of last shift I will be on restricted physical work, leaving Chilli and Sylvie to do most of the grunt work that they already do and will also be restricted to, as Kelly used to call it, my renta-cop buggy car when we're all out on calls unless it is an absolutely necessary. That is until my relief PFO, who has yet to be decided everybody, takes over when I need to go on maternity leave that starts in, well, in seven months." Everyone's eyes went wide before the cheering began. They couldn't believe it. Not only had the pair they had been betting on when they would get together were finally engaged, but they were also expecting a baby of their very own.

"I am so happy for you,' Matt chuckled, as he rushed forward with his beer in hand to congratulate the couple, "A little Baby Severide, our Firehouse is never going to be the same again is it."

"No, it won't be," Raelynn chuckled, as Matt swept her up into his own hug, "It's probably going to get a whole lot noisier and a lot more crowded. My dad is going to probably show up at the Firehouse a lot more often than he ever did before, but…" She shrugged and smiled as Herrmann and his wife came up to offer hugs and their congratulations for the future parents and bestow them with little tidbits of advice that they had learned over the years from raising their own children.

"We'll talk later," Kelly assured one of his oldest friends, "Lynn and I have something that we want to ask you and Dawson, but, uh…" Matt nodded as both of the Lieutenants looked towards the group of people that were gathering around the couple to give them their congratulations and any advice that they could offer. Leaving the happy couple behind, Matt moved towards the bar where Dawson was already standing with a large smile on her face.

"Who would have thought," Dawson chuckled, as Matt took the empty bar stool in front of her, "Shay was right; three and half years later and their engaged with a baby on the way." Matt nodded and chuckled slightly as he looked back towards the couple that were still being submersed in congratulatory hugs and kisses from their many guests.

"She probably would have been the first one to figure out that they were together," Matt agreed, as he watched them. There was an air of grace surrounding them both as they took the multitude of advice givers with an amazing attitude, even though, he was sure that both of their heads were swimming.

"You were the one that caught them going at it in your apartment," Dawson answered, "If anybody was going to figure it out it was going to be you-"

"Yeah, but if Shay had been alive," Matt countered, "Severide still would have been living in that apartment of theirs and she would have been the one to catch them, and thank you for reminding me of that little fact, I had just gotten the image of the woman I thought of as a little sister out of my head."

"Oops," Dawson chuckled, looking at her own fiancée mischievously. They were a couple of months out from their own wedding, now that Dawson had found another firehouse since she couldn't report to Matt if they were married. Leaning against the bar, Dawson looked towards the happy couple herself, the smiles on both Kelly and Raelynn's faces seemed like they were never going to leave. She couldn't believe how far the newly engaged couple had come. Several years ago, they were pranking each other and now, they were, well they were still pranking each other, but they were no longer angry whenever the other entered a new romantic relationship or arguing whenever the sexual tension between them was too much to take.

"I'm happy for them," Dawson sighed, as she watched the couple hug their fathers before walking towards them, "Like, I'm really happy for you two."

"Thanks, Dawson," Raelynn chuckled, as she took the seat beside Kelly as they looked towards two of their closest friends, "But, before you get started in on the congratulations, we, uh, we wanted to ask the two of you something."

"Well, go ahead then," Matt chuckled, as he waved at them both.

"We all know how dangerous this life could be," Kelly started, wrapping an arm around Raelynn's shoulders, "And, well, when we discovered that Raelynn was pregnant, we got to thinking who would take care of the baby if something were to happen to the both of us."

"And we were wondering," Raelynn continued for her fiancé, "If the two of you would be his or her's godparents. Nothing is set in stone right now, but, we would really like it if-"

"Of course, we will," Matt answered, wrapping the happy couple in his arms, as Dawson looked on with a smile before hugging the couple herself the moment that Matt let go of them, "And trust me, nothing will ever happen to either one of you, if I have anything to say about it."

* * *

 **A/N: And that's the end of the 'That Age Old Story,' but, I'm leaving it open if I ever want to return to it.**

 **Let me know what you think.**

 **xo**


End file.
